Filipina raped, beaten up by employer in Kuwait – report

MANILA, Philippines - A 25-year-old Filipina household service worker ended up in a hospital after her employer physically and sexually abused her last February, an online report said. The Arab Times reported that Filipina domestic helper Lina recounted her ordeal with staff of the Philippine Embassy who visited her at the Mubarak Al Kabeer Hospital in Kuwait, where she was confined for two weeks. She said in the report that her employer – reportedly a member of the local police – had been physically and sexually abusing her since she started working in his household. Every time his wife left for work, Lina’s employer would reportedly grab her by the hair and drag her to her room. In a bid to resist his advances, she would allegedly be “punched and pummeled on her face and body, leaving her almost black and blue from bruises and her face swollen." “I did everything I could to resist his sexual advances but there was not much I could do as he was a big man. He would just grab at my private parts and if I refuse and resisted, he would pin me to the floor and start hitting me all over my body until I was too weak to put up any resistance," she said in the report. However, she said she could not remember how many times she has been raped and forced to perform oral sex with her employer. Lina said when she finally decided to tell her employer’s wife about the incidents, she received a worse beating. The wife confronted the man but was reportedly swayed by his “vehement denial" of the allegations – which led to her being struck and repeatedly kicked on her face and head, leaving her with a swollen face, a head trauma, and a badly-bruised body. She said that she was then taken – in a semi-conscious state – to the Salmiya Police Station where her male employer reportedly filed a case of attempted suicide against her. After she was brought to the Mubarak Al Kabeer Hospital, representatives from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office and the Assistance to Nationals Unit of the Philippine Embassy visited her and saw her condition. And despite medical reports indicating that Lina’s injuries were consistent with that of a suicide attempt, authorities reportedly dismissed the case and suggested that she file a case of grave sexual and physical abuse against her male employer instead. According to the Arab Times, Philippine Ambassador to Kuwait Ricardo M. Endaya ordered the immediate filing of the case against Lina’s employer seeking the maximum penalty imposed for such crimes. He said in the report that this case “highlights" the helpless situation many Filipina household helpers find themselves in. “In this case, the victim was not only forced to perform sexual acts against her will, she was also badly beaten and then accused of trying to commit suicide, in a gross attempt to cover up the crime," he said. “How many more Filipinas like her are out there suffering unimaginable abuse at the hands of unconscionable employers in silence just to be able to earn meager and pitiable amounts to send to their families back home, is something I hate to think about and contemplate," he added. Endaya expressed hopes that employers would “learn to respect human rights and show compassion to their household helpers." Lina said she has also not been paid her wages for the past eleven months. In addition, her female employer reportedly instructed her not to reveal the identity of her husband so that she will be paid for her services in full. The report said that the Philippine Embassy has already submitted the full medical report to the court while lawyers have also been hired to handle the case. Lina is currently in the protective custody of the Philippine Embassy. - Kimberly Jane T. Tan, GMANews.TV